Race Report: HalfMax 1/2 Iron-Distance National Championship Triathlon
September 16, 2006, Innsbrook, Missouri
The weeks leading up to the 2006 1/2 Iron-distance championship in Innsbrook, Missouri, had me burning the proverbial candle on both ends. Long hours at the office and training, short hours to sleep and rest. I got to the starting line fit, but tired, and honestly, not feeling well, probably due to lack of rest. My race-day strategy would have to be different, I told myself. Stay under control and just see how I felt as the race progressed.
The conditions appeared to be pretty good. Dry and not too hot, at least not yet. Wetsuits were allowed. Psychologically this was huge for me, especially since I wasn't feeling great.
The few hundred men all started together. The typical thrashfest took place in the first 500 meters or so and then it thinned out. My stroke felt good, my stomach didn't. I imagined if I threw up, I would feel better. Luckily, for the few swimming behind me, it never got to that point. I exited the water with a decent (for me) swim split and started up the hill to transition. I saw Brad and he said "Respect the Lake" as I headed to my bike.
Changing out of my wetsuit took longer than expected and my calves were on the verge of cramping as I tugged and pulled. I was finally on my bike and into the hills of the resort. People were hammering as if it were a sprint tri and I was confused and surprised at how many women had passed me on the swim. Respect. I stayed comfortable and began to pick it up once we left the resort for faster biking roads. My average speed kept climbing and I was encouraged until I turned into a killer headwind that lasted the rest of the first 28-mile loop. Retracing the hills in the resort wasn't bad, but the wind seemed to pick up.
I suspected that headwind would be turned up a notch on the second and final lap, right when the fatigue began to kick in. Exactly. As I moved past a cyclist, he looked over at me and shouted "What do you think of this wind?" I swallowed my real answer and replied with a "No comment" as he continued with "REEEE-LENTLESS!" The headwind seemed to peak at the aid station. As I looked over at one of the volunteers, he yelled, "You've Been Activated Man -- Let's Go!!" Awesome. I was pretty sure it was the "Memphis Activator." I came into T2 a little spent but got some good cheers from the Havens family.
I approached the dismount per the instructions of the volunteers and said "nice line" to the staff as I got off the bike in front of the practically invisible thin silver strip of duct tape on the gray cement. I could hear the laughter as I went to rack my bike.
The sun was out and the temperature had climbed well into the 80s, so I grabbed my visor and a gel and started running toward the hill. I turned right onto the driveway when a spectator yelled and pointed me towards a line of cones across a field, a different route than in years past. The slope of the hill just before the road was very steep, but the cheering spectators helped me. I wanted to comment on how nicely the grass was cut, but I had no capacity to speak.
I was maintaining my race strategy of a steady, controlled effort, and with the Innsbrook hills looming, I thought this was a smart way to continue. The volunteers during the run were awesome and I knew a handful of them from the St. Louis tri scene. The revised course was still tough, but I liked the 100% out and back course. I saw Diesel and knew that by the distance he trailed me that something wasn't right with him. Matt C, Greg S, and Brad and Paula under the Big Shark tent all spotted me and gave me a boost. Brad's prediction that I would be the first guy named Jan to finish made me laugh.
On the second run loop I ate a gel when it seemed like I was ready to stop running halfway up a hill. With a few miles to go, I saw Jamie for the first time. She looked good and I was confident she'd finish her first 1/2 IM.
As I approached the finish, I ranked my finish time as a sort of average of my seven half-Ironman races. But the fact that I ran an even run split and, based on how I had been feeling, I was OK with that and happy to "go the distance" on a challenging course.
Finish Result: 72nd overall, 14th out of 42 in the M35-39 Age Group.
After collecting myself in the finish area and sitting in an amazingly comfortable chair under the Big Shark tent for a while, I walked up the course to cheer for the remaining racers and look for Jamie. I was surprised when Diesel appeared coming down the final stretch. Back spasms explained what he was still doing out on the course when I thought he had already finished, packed up, and gone home. Way to get through a difficult day, man. Soon after, FOA Jamie came around the corner still running comfortably and cruising in for her first 1/2 Ironman — great job!
Departing thought: Looking forward to a break from heavy training and constant race preparation. I feel like getting caught up on "the rest" of my life for a while.
Departing Activation: Race photographers "Picture Master" and race organizers for making these high quality photographs free for downloading. Activated!
The weeks leading up to the 2006 1/2 Iron-distance championship in Innsbrook, Missouri, had me burning the proverbial candle on both ends. Long hours at the office and training, short hours to sleep and rest. I got to the starting line fit, but tired, and honestly, not feeling well, probably due to lack of rest. My race-day strategy would have to be different, I told myself. Stay under control and just see how I felt as the race progressed.
The conditions appeared to be pretty good. Dry and not too hot, at least not yet. Wetsuits were allowed. Psychologically this was huge for me, especially since I wasn't feeling great.
The few hundred men all started together. The typical thrashfest took place in the first 500 meters or so and then it thinned out. My stroke felt good, my stomach didn't. I imagined if I threw up, I would feel better. Luckily, for the few swimming behind me, it never got to that point. I exited the water with a decent (for me) swim split and started up the hill to transition. I saw Brad and he said "Respect the Lake" as I headed to my bike.
Changing out of my wetsuit took longer than expected and my calves were on the verge of cramping as I tugged and pulled. I was finally on my bike and into the hills of the resort. People were hammering as if it were a sprint tri and I was confused and surprised at how many women had passed me on the swim. Respect. I stayed comfortable and began to pick it up once we left the resort for faster biking roads. My average speed kept climbing and I was encouraged until I turned into a killer headwind that lasted the rest of the first 28-mile loop. Retracing the hills in the resort wasn't bad, but the wind seemed to pick up.
I suspected that headwind would be turned up a notch on the second and final lap, right when the fatigue began to kick in. Exactly. As I moved past a cyclist, he looked over at me and shouted "What do you think of this wind?" I swallowed my real answer and replied with a "No comment" as he continued with "REEEE-LENTLESS!" The headwind seemed to peak at the aid station. As I looked over at one of the volunteers, he yelled, "You've Been Activated Man -- Let's Go!!" Awesome. I was pretty sure it was the "Memphis Activator." I came into T2 a little spent but got some good cheers from the Havens family.
I approached the dismount per the instructions of the volunteers and said "nice line" to the staff as I got off the bike in front of the practically invisible thin silver strip of duct tape on the gray cement. I could hear the laughter as I went to rack my bike.
The sun was out and the temperature had climbed well into the 80s, so I grabbed my visor and a gel and started running toward the hill. I turned right onto the driveway when a spectator yelled and pointed me towards a line of cones across a field, a different route than in years past. The slope of the hill just before the road was very steep, but the cheering spectators helped me. I wanted to comment on how nicely the grass was cut, but I had no capacity to speak.
I was maintaining my race strategy of a steady, controlled effort, and with the Innsbrook hills looming, I thought this was a smart way to continue. The volunteers during the run were awesome and I knew a handful of them from the St. Louis tri scene. The revised course was still tough, but I liked the 100% out and back course. I saw Diesel and knew that by the distance he trailed me that something wasn't right with him. Matt C, Greg S, and Brad and Paula under the Big Shark tent all spotted me and gave me a boost. Brad's prediction that I would be the first guy named Jan to finish made me laugh.
On the second run loop I ate a gel when it seemed like I was ready to stop running halfway up a hill. With a few miles to go, I saw Jamie for the first time. She looked good and I was confident she'd finish her first 1/2 IM.
As I approached the finish, I ranked my finish time as a sort of average of my seven half-Ironman races. But the fact that I ran an even run split and, based on how I had been feeling, I was OK with that and happy to "go the distance" on a challenging course.
Finish Result: 72nd overall, 14th out of 42 in the M35-39 Age Group.
After collecting myself in the finish area and sitting in an amazingly comfortable chair under the Big Shark tent for a while, I walked up the course to cheer for the remaining racers and look for Jamie. I was surprised when Diesel appeared coming down the final stretch. Back spasms explained what he was still doing out on the course when I thought he had already finished, packed up, and gone home. Way to get through a difficult day, man. Soon after, FOA Jamie came around the corner still running comfortably and cruising in for her first 1/2 Ironman — great job!
Departing thought: Looking forward to a break from heavy training and constant race preparation. I feel like getting caught up on "the rest" of my life for a while.
Departing Activation: Race photographers "Picture Master" and race organizers for making these high quality photographs free for downloading. Activated!
posted by JPD at Monday, October 16, 2006
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